Tech Tips
Restoration Part 1
RESTORATION, FROM THE GROUND-UP
(First in series)
Over the next several months I will be offering, for your approval, a series of articles outlining the process of automobile restoration in general and Z car restoration in particular. I hope to be able to provide the sort of information that will be of value to fellow club members who are considering restoration.
What exactly does restoration mean? From my experience it means many things to many different people. To some it means a set of fancy wheels and a new set of carpets. To others it means a rebuilt engine and new seat covers. Friends, these are not restorations. While it is possible, and in many cases very practical, to do less than a full restoration, and we do these in my shop all the time, a ground up restoration involves reducing the body to a shell, rebuilding the sub assemblies, returning the body to like-new condition and reassembling the car using new or rebuilt components. That is the industry-recognized definition of a restoration.
What models are suitable subjects for full restorations? It is a lot easier to try to explain what models are not good candidates for restoration. Any model that exists in large numbers and can be easily purchased in excellent condition. At this point in time, this means 300ZX’s of any vintage. After all, it makes a lot more sense to find a 300 in good condition for a reasonable price than to buy a basket case and spend a lot of money bringing it back to like new condition (more on this subject later). So, what does that leave? For all practical purposes the first generation, 1970-1978 Z’s are the models that find their way into restoration shops.
What about just restoring part of an automobile? I call that system restoration. System restoration means restoring a system, i.e. brakes, suspension, etc. to new condition. This is the most common procedure we undertake at my shop. A classic case would be a first generation car whose owner is experiencing a problem with a system; let’s use the brakes as an example. On examination I might find that some portion of the brake system has had attention in the recent past but the rest of the now 25 or more year old system is original. Or, I could find that the brakes have been subject to butchery (we’ll cover this subject in more depth later). These are cases where anything less than restoration of the brake system would border on criminal behavior.
Next time, deciding what your goal is or The Slippery Slope.
Michael McGinnis
Banzai Motorworks
(First in series)
Over the next several months I will be offering, for your approval, a series of articles outlining the process of automobile restoration in general and Z car restoration in particular. I hope to be able to provide the sort of information that will be of value to fellow club members who are considering restoration.
What exactly does restoration mean? From my experience it means many things to many different people. To some it means a set of fancy wheels and a new set of carpets. To others it means a rebuilt engine and new seat covers. Friends, these are not restorations. While it is possible, and in many cases very practical, to do less than a full restoration, and we do these in my shop all the time, a ground up restoration involves reducing the body to a shell, rebuilding the sub assemblies, returning the body to like-new condition and reassembling the car using new or rebuilt components. That is the industry-recognized definition of a restoration.
What models are suitable subjects for full restorations? It is a lot easier to try to explain what models are not good candidates for restoration. Any model that exists in large numbers and can be easily purchased in excellent condition. At this point in time, this means 300ZX’s of any vintage. After all, it makes a lot more sense to find a 300 in good condition for a reasonable price than to buy a basket case and spend a lot of money bringing it back to like new condition (more on this subject later). So, what does that leave? For all practical purposes the first generation, 1970-1978 Z’s are the models that find their way into restoration shops.
What about just restoring part of an automobile? I call that system restoration. System restoration means restoring a system, i.e. brakes, suspension, etc. to new condition. This is the most common procedure we undertake at my shop. A classic case would be a first generation car whose owner is experiencing a problem with a system; let’s use the brakes as an example. On examination I might find that some portion of the brake system has had attention in the recent past but the rest of the now 25 or more year old system is original. Or, I could find that the brakes have been subject to butchery (we’ll cover this subject in more depth later). These are cases where anything less than restoration of the brake system would border on criminal behavior.
Next time, deciding what your goal is or The Slippery Slope.
Michael McGinnis
Banzai Motorworks